Actor Aamir Khan on Monday said he took “full responsibility” for the failure of his recent film Thugs of Hindostan at the box office, reported NDTV. Directed by Vijay Krishna Acharya, the Amitabh Bachchan-Aamir Khan-starrer was released on November 8 on approximately 5,000 screens in Hindi, Telugu and Tamil. On November 21, 13 days after its release, the Yash Raj Films production had not reached the Rs 150-crore mark.
“I think we went wrong but I would like to take full responsibility for that,” Khan said on the sidelines of the awards ceremony of Cinestaan India’s Storytellers Script Contest in Mumbai. “You can be sure that we tried our level best, we left no stone unturned but somewhere we went wrong.”
Also starring Katrina Kaif and Fatima Sana Sheikh, Thugs of Hindostan is a pre-Independence drama that centres around Firangi (Khan), who infiltrates a gang of freedom fighters headed by Khudabaksh (Bachchan). On the day of its release, the film earned Rs 50.25 crores, but its earnings steadily dipped thereafter.
“There were some people who liked the film and we would like to thank them,” Khan added. “But they form a minority. Most people haven’t liked the film and we have understood that...I also want to apologise to the audience who came with a lot of expectations to watch my film. I am feeling very bad that we were not able to entertain them.”
At the ceremony, organised by Cinestaan Digital Pvt Ltd, Khan, along with screen writers Anjum Rajabali and Juhi Chaturvedi, handed out cash awards to three winners. The first prize was won by Christo Tomy from Kerala for the story Funeral. The second prize was won by Biplab Goswami for the story Two Brides and the third prize went to Satyen K Bordoloi for Who Will Marry Thomas.
“Without a good script, there can never be a good film,” Khan said. “There are many good and deserving writers in our country. However, not all of them have the right platform or opportunities to showcase their talent.”